BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 2. "Birlik" Odessa Azerbaijanis diaspora organization celebrated May 28 - Independence Day and the 107th anniversary of the establishment of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR) in Odessa, Ukraine, the Azerbaijani State Committee on Work with Diaspora told Trend.
Members of the organization’s Board of Directors, public figures, and diaspora activists took part in the event.
First, the national anthems of Azerbaijan and Ukraine were played.
Then, the memory of the martyrs who gave their lives for the freedom and territorial integrity of both countries was honored with a one-minute moment of silence.
The event moderator, lawyer and member of the Ukrainian Bar Association, Aydin Aliyev, briefed on the ADR history.
He emphasized that the ADR placed special importance on human rights and that, in the early 20th century, it granted women in an Eastern country the right to vote and be elected.
Chairman of the “Birlik” Odessa Azerbaijani Diaspora Organization Jalil Astanov said that the present-day Republic of Azerbaijan, the successor of the republic founded 107 years ago, is in safe hands under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev.
Former rector of Odessa University of Economics, Professor Mikhail Zveryakov spoke about Azerbaijan–Ukraine intergovernmental relations and the history of friendship between the two peoples.
Former member of parliament Aleksandr Presman especially emphasized Azerbaijan’s hegemonic role in the Caucasus as a state with a powerful army.
Chairman of the Odessa District Council Vitaliy Barvenenko congratulated Azerbaijanis on the occasion of the Republic Day and noted that they will provide all possible support for the building of an Azerbaijan Park in Odessa.
Chairman of the Afghan National-Cultural Unity, Nuri Azim, spoke about the friendship between Azerbaijani and Ukranian peoples.
Chairman of the Council of Elders, Haji Namig, highlighted the role of May 28 in Azerbaijani nation’s history of independence and statehood.
“It is a matter of pride that our first capital, Ganja, and Odessa are sister cities. I would also like to point out that two ministers of our first state, Nasib bey Yusifbayli and Khosrov bay Sultanov, studied precisely in today’s I.I. Mechnikov University in Odessa,” said Anar Natigoghlu, Deputy Chairman of the “Birlik” organization.
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